This sermon was delivered April 24, 2022 at the Kensington Retirement Home in Galesburg, IL.
Provisions Not Proof
John 20:19-31
How many times have we heard this text? What is the first thing that pops into your head when you hear it? Doubting Thomas. Isn’t that the sermon you are expecting to hear today? It is after all the Sunday after Easter, this is the day that we talk about “Doubting Thomas” and how it is important to have belief even if we can’t see. Right? Well, not exactly.
Today’s text is a story, and the whole story shows us, the readers, how Christ makes provisions for us, so that we can keep on doing the work of the church. This story is not about doubt, rather it’s a story about what Jesus gives the disciples. He gives them provisions. He gives them peace, power, proof. Jesus offers the disciples these basic provisions for the journey on which they are about to embark—the journey of life and ministry without him. We too are on a journey together and these same provisions will prepare us for the road that lies ahead. Jesus gave his disciples, and gives us 3 key things: peace, power and proof.
We are assured that Christ is with us, and this assurance brings us comfort.
Jesus provides peace. In this passage the disciples are locked up in a house fearing for their very lives when Jesus comes into their midst. He doesn’t say, “Hey y’all I’m home,” rather he offers them a greeting of peace. He says, “Peace be with you”. How comforting that must have been. It had just been 3 days since they had buried their friend, and there they were, sitting alone in a locked house pondering the news that Mary Magdalene brought them from the tomb, still mourning the loss of their friend, scared of the world around them, afraid to even answer the door. Everyone was there—all of the disciples, the women, Mary Magdeline—everyone except Thomas (but we’ll get to him in a few minutes).
Imagine how that might have felt…they were lost, confused, frightened that they were going to be gathered up and executed. They had no idea what to do next. And then, suddenly, Jesus just showed up… “POOF” he was right there in their midst. And his first words to them must have sounded a lot like a “Fear Not,” or “It’s going to be ok.” He was bringing them a message of comfort. You see, Jesus had told them that he would return. He had made them a promise. And in that moment, appearing there before them, he made good on what he had promised. In that moment, he provided them with what they needed for faith. He gave them the peace they would need to survive in the middle of all the hate and persecution they would soon face. His very presence reminded them that with Christ in their hearts they’d be able to make it through the days ahead. He provided peace.
Christ still provides us with peace. In the midst of our own trials and tribulations, he steps in and offers us his comfort; we just have to be willing to accept it. Have you ever been in a situation where the world swirls wildly around you? When you feel completely lost, lonely, confused and afraid? Have you then felt that strange and wonderful calm as it washes over you? That moment is your “fear not”, that is Christ entering and giving you the peace you require. This peace might come from an unlikely source, or it might even be hard to understand at first. But, we are assured that Christ is with us, and this assurance brings us comfort. The risen Christ still provides peace!
All people who have received the Holy Spirit are expected to, even required to, continue the mission of Christ and his disciples.
Jesus provides power. He gives the disciples the power they need. This comes in two forms, he breathes into them the Holy Spirit, and he gives them the power to forgive and retain sins. Having given them these gifts, Christ sends them out to continue the work he began, but he does not send them out unprepared. According to John, until this moment only Christ, through God, had the power to forgive and retain sins. In order for this work to continue, that power had to be transferred. Then Christ breathes the Holy Spirit onto the disciples, he is equipping the disciples for the ministry they are to continue. Christ provides them with what they need.
By virtue of our baptism, we are also prepared to continue Christ’s work. In our baptisms, we too receive the gift of the Holy Spirit and therefore are partners in the continued work of the risen Christ. This work might take different forms, but because we are baptized the Holy Spirit indeed helps us in that work. See, Jesus didn’t just show up to offer comfort. He showed up, and then told the Disciples to GET UP…to get up and get going spreading the word of the resurrection and God’s amazing love. All people who have received the Holy Spirit are expected to, even required to, continue the mission of Christ and his disciples. We are equipped to do the work.
But Jesus goes one step further—he goes beyond the peace…he goes beyond the power. Jesus provides proof. The resurrected Christ is proof to us and to the world that God does exist and that God does work in our world. THIS is where the story of Thomas comes in. Now, Thomas gets a bad reputation for his actions…he is often called doubting Thomas. But before you buy into that version of Thomas’s story, put yourself in his sandals for a moment.
You and your friends have just lost your leader, teacher, and friend. You are scared for your life; you are lonely. All your buddies lock themselves in a house and for some reason you just weren’t there. When you finally return to your friends, they tell you this fantastic story about Christ just showing up. Would you believe them? Did they believe Mary Magdalene when she told them the same story? Not wanting to be the butt of a joke, you comment “I won’t believe it unless I see it for myself. I want to touch the wounds” Truthfully, you really did want to see it for yourself, you wanted to have that same feeling that your buddies apparently had. You want to see him too!
Ok, so having been Thomas for a bit, perhaps we can have a little more sympathy for his situation. See, just a week earlier the disciples didn’t “buy it” either. Seriously, would you have believed it? Would you believe a woman who claims to have seen angels and an empty tomb? They don’t believe her, and until Christ himself shows up and shows his wounds, they don’t believe. Thomas is no different! He wasn’t there the first time, and like the others, he just needs more information…he needs proof. He needed something from Christ in order to be able to move on. And Christ obliged. A week later…the scene from before repeats itself.
A week later his disciples were again in the house, and Thomas was with them. Although the doors were shut, Jesus came and stood among them and said, “Peace be with you.” Then he said to Thomas, “Put your finger here and see my hands. Reach out your hand and put it in my side. Do not doubt but believe.” He showed his wounds to Thomas and almost dared him to touch them.
Here is the question however; did Thomas touch the wounds? (pause) Did Thomas touch the wounds? (pause) No, he did not. The very sight of Christ’s appearance provides all the proof Thomas needs, right then and there Thomas makes his confession, “My Lord, my God.” It wasn’t that Thomas doubted the truth, he doubted the people sharing the message. Christ provides him with a way to trust the message, and in so doing, Thomas is also able to trust the messengers. Thomas needed the same experience the other disciples had shared…he didn’t NEED to touch the wounds. He just needed to learn to trust. It is not in touching Jesus that Thomas is changed, it’s in Jesus’ offer of himself to Thomas that brings about his powerful confession!
Then Jesus shares the words we are so familiar with…Jesus said to him, “Have you believed because you have seen me? Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have come to believe.” This is not an admonishment of Thomas, but rather an announcement of things to come. From this moment on, faith will no longer look the same. No longer able to dwell among them, Christ needed to give the disciples and future believers a new way to have faith. Again, the risen Christ provides. Through this event with Thomas, Jesus introduces a new type of faith. This new faith will be one where people will have to believe without seeing, simply based on the witness of the apostles. Seeing Christ face to face will not be an option for the new believers—they will have to find other ways to believe. He provided the proof the disciples needed in order to get the news of the resurrection across. His appearance not only made his disciples believe…it made them believable.
The risen Christ continues to provide proof to us through the witnesses of countless disciples and believers. We are given myriad opportunities to touch and see the life of Christ through the lives of those who surround us. We don’t have to touch his wounds in order to believe, we just need to believe the accounts of the disciples and those who serve as witnesses. Such witnesses walk among us and beside us, we just have to ask for them to be revealed. We cannot be afraid to ask for more information! We are not doubting when we ask questions, we are giving Christ an opportunity to be revealed to us in a new way!